Obituary of Richard E. Knight

The children of Richard E. Knight, 96, of Stow, are saddened to announce that he passed away Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at The Village of St. Edward in Fairlawn. Dad was born September 19, 1922 in Hartford City, Indiana. His family moved to Fort Wayne in 1923. Always in love with airplanes, he graduated from Indiana Institute of Technology in 1943 with a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering. He then went to work for Chance Vought Aircraft in Stratford, Connecticut, doing performance analysis on the F4U Corsair, as well as working on Vought’s first jet fighter planes. He obtained his student pilot’s license in 1945. In 1946, he left Vought and started work at Goodyear Aerospace Corporation in Akron. He held many positions at GAC, including managing several departments. He developed numerous innovative aerospace products while there and was granted a patent for one. He worked closely with the Air Force analyzing the Russian space program. This work took him to the Paris Air Show twice. He was also a principal in developing the Meteor and Meteor Junior early shuttle concepts, which garnered international news coverage and are discussed in the official history of Goodyear. Over the course of his long aviation career, his path crossed that of many historical figures, including Charles Lindbergh, Wernher Von Braun, and Yuri Gagarin. In 1973, contract cutbacks forced him to move from GAC to Goodyear Tire. Being an “engineer’s engineer” he adapted quickly and became a recognized expert in truck tire rolling resistance.

He was truly a great engineer, but most of all he was a great Dad. We will always remember our family vacations, including trips in the station wagon to Niagara Falls and along the Lincoln Trail. But our fondest memories will always be time spent in a cottage at Crooked Lake in Angola, Indiana, with side trips to Fort Wayne to visit our aunts, uncles, and many cousins. Dad enjoyed model airplanes, amateur astronomy, fishing, and golfing, but most of all loved spending time working in his yard, tending to his gardens, and watching the shadows get long on a summer evening while enjoying a beverage on his porch.

Dad is survived and remembered by his children Patricia (Bryan) Ashman, Ann (Justin) McCarty, Carol (Rex) Roberts, Cynthia (Scott) Craig, Kenneth (Laurie) Knight, twelve grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife of 45 years, our Mom, Mary (Petersen), his parents, Earl and Dorothy (Farber) Knight, sisters, Mary Jane, Bernadine, Martha, and Florence, and brothers, John, Al, Frank, and Ray.

A special thank you from all of us to the amazing caregivers at The Village of St. Edward and Heartland Hospice. You treated Dad with dignity, compassion, and love.

Mass of Christian Burial will be at 11:00 AM Tuesday, June 18, 2019 at Holy Family Catholic Church, 3179 Kent Road, Stow, OH 44224. Calling hours will be 5:00 - 8:00 PM Monday, June 17, 2019 at Redmon Funeral Home, 3633 Darrow Road, Stow, OH 44224. Burial in Holy Cross Cemetery, Akron, OH. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to The Village of St. Edward Foundation or the Heartland Hospice Memorial Fund.